Sellers value agents in stressful time

A NEW survey suggests that over half of Australian home sellers believe that selling property is one of the most stressful experiences in life and the largest contributor to that stress is the process of selecting the right real estate agent.

The LocalAgentFinder Seller Sentiment Survey questioned 1,058 Australian property owners, who had either sold property over the last 12 months or were planning to sell over the next 12 months, about their decision making and sentiment around the selling process.

The survey was completed in the latter half of last year by independent research house, Nature Agency, on behalf of LocalAgentFinder.

While 57 per cent of those surveyed believed selling a property is one of the most stressful experiences in life, 51 per cent of this group also agreed that most of the stress in selling was around selecting the right real estate agent.

Sellers highly valued the role of real estate agents in the listing process, with 70 per cent of respondents saying they help vendors make informed choices, 66 per cent said agents reduce the stress of selling and 63 per cent said agents can benefit the sellers of real estate.

One Agency Torquay director Shaun O’Callaghan said that it was understandable that sellers have some anxiety about the process, because they are heading into territory that they rarely enter.

“Most home owners only sell a few times in their lives, and even for those that have sold multiple times, each experience is quite different,” Mr O’Callaghan said.

“Helping to demystify the process, avoidance of real estate jargon and a consultative approach has served us well over the years with helping sellers bridge the gap with the unknown.

“As with all great relationships, clear communication is the best way forward.”

LocalAgentFinder chief executive officer Matt McCann said that of the findings the survey results clearly suggest that selling a home is incredibly stressful for most people and selecting the right real estate agent may be the key to alleviating this stress for the majority of people.

“This may be because of the human and sales management elements that agents bring to the selling process and also their unique skill in being able to negotiate between buyer and seller in an emotionally charged and taxing process,” Mr McCann said.

“The data points to a long-held view by LocalAgentFinder that the future is bright for real estate agents as consumers really do value what they have to offer.”

The survey also shed light on how people are choosing real estate agents today with 30 per cent of respondents saying they would appoint an agent they have used before, 27 per cent said they are taking referrals from family and friends, and 23 per cent said they are searching online for an agent; 12 per cent of respondents said they were searching for an agent through a comparison platform like LocalAgentFinder.